Students' eyes are witnessing more man-made visuals everyday than at anytime in human history. Most of those visuals are trying to convince them what to think, buy, feel, or do - many without them knowing it. To ignore this part of reality in the classroom is to not prepare our students for the world at large. If education is to prepare students for their future and life, then how can we ignore something so front and center as the visuals they see everyday?

Visual literacy is to learn how images work, what they mean, and how to 'read' them like they would a piece of text. More and more communication in the modern world is visual and it would be in the best interest of the students that they learn about this medium in the classroom. We don't expect our children to pick up reading in the streets, why would we expect them to pick up visual communication?

For this section, I have posted below six ideas for utilizing visual literacy in accordance to the Common Core Standards. After reviewing my ideas, I will choose one to implement in class. Click below for my ideas.

Implementation

For class I made a list of 100 interesting and more precise verbs for use in story-writing. I wanted to get the kids using more variety in their verbs to spice up their writing. I added the words onto wordle.com and printed out the sheets so the kids could look at them closely. I had them pick out four verbs they had never used before (or don't remember using before) and circle them.

A students wordle sheet after their search.

After they chose their four words, I explained their meanings and how to use them in a sentence. They could also look them up on the translator to get the Korean definition for better clarity. After they understood the meaning of the words, they used them in a sentence each. Then, they were to draw a picture that matched the action. This way I was able to assess their writing and whether they fully understood the word meaning with the picture corroboration of the sentence.

An example of student work

Successes and Challenges

During my explanation, the kids were already curious and excited to get their hands on the Wordle sheets. They really enjoyed looking at the words in a different format, I think it resembled a game more than work for them. Hunting for words was more like a word search than vocabulary practice. The kids were quietly engaged searching for words they hadn't used and were interested in trying. Making the process of using words you don't know part of the task relaxed them about having to know everything and try something different. When most of the kids in my class only use words they know and keep it simple to avoid errors, it was refreshing to see the students really active about picking words they didn't understand. I could tell this easily because they were all raising their hands impatiently to get the explanation of their words. With the exception of one student, they were all very engaged and focused.

One student wasn't too interested in this task and was visually bored after doing her search. I'm not sure if it had anything to do with this particular lesson, or something unrelated since she has been on and off like this since the beginning. I won't claim to know what is the source of the problem, but I will continue to try and engage her in other ways throughout the year.

The writing part was much less exciting for the students but they had a good head of steam after the word search, so they moved into the writing more excited than a 'normal' writing assignment. Many of them finished one or two sentences then slowed down noticeably. I think next time I will take a break between the two parts of this assignment or even cut it down to two sentences at a time and then do the activity more often for vocabulary building.

All in all, I thought the activity worked well, and with a few tweaks on timing and shortening the writing, this will show up in class again in my room.

"Everything that we see is a shadow cast by that which we do not see." (Martin Luther King jr.)

Woman on the Bus

A woman looks at her phone on a bus in downtown Seoul, 2015

Seoul Protest 2015

People from around 120 unions and groups organized the protests on Saturday, December 5th, that saw thousands marching through downtown Seoul. Many people carried signs that said roughly "listen to the people" as they feel the current government is not working for the people but for the Chaebol (large corporations).

Mask Dance

Thousands took to the streets to protest several government plans in Seoul on Saturday, December 5th. They were told not to wear masks because of the "threat of ISIS". The protesters responded by wearing thousands of masks, some dancing traditional samulnori along the way.

Shoulder View

Getting a better view of the traditional Korean dancing at the Bupyeong Festival, this girl sits on dad's shoulders.

Angled Emotion

A man picks up recycling in the city while a little girl pouts in the doorway behind him.

Framing the Street

Tucked into an alley in northern Seoul, graffiti hides as people walk past.

The Clown

A performer prepares to entertain children on Children's Day at Children's Grand Park in Seoul.

Yellow Dust Love

A couple gets intimate during yellow dust season in Myeongdong. "Yellow Dust" is the polluted air that drifts from the Gobi Desert, picking up coal pollution over the cities of China, to Korea.

Rock Reflection

Cape Disappointment, Washington

Launch Pad to the Universe

The Milky Way jetting up from the peaks at Colonial in the North Cascades, Washington

Watercolor Sky

The colors of sunset above Eastern Jeju Island, South Korea

The Race

Two shooting stars race across the night sky at Liberty Bell Peak, Washington

Mt. St. Helens

From Johnston Ridge

The Girl with the Mask

"Park Geun Hye resign" is written across her mask. She speaks loudly without noise in the crowd f nearly a million protesting the president of South Korea on 11/12

Monk in the Front

A million people took to the streets on 11/12 to protest the president in one of the largest protests in Korean history. Many religious leaders joined together to hold signs that read "Park Geun Hye resign"

Man with Candle

One of a million protesting the president of South Korea on 11/12, holding a candle for the vigil and marching to show his support of the president stepping down.

Helping Hands

These girls help this man light his candle as night falls over approximately a million people in the streets of downtown Seoul on 11/12.

Anti-Government DJ Spinning

A DJ spins music for the crowd of protesters on 11/12 as they march against the president of Korea.

A Family Marches

A family marches with candles during the protest on 11/12 that saw a million people spill into the streets of downtown Seoul.

Flying

Flying on the shoulders of her father, this girl had a VIP view of the million person protest against the president on 11/12

Spectacle

Overlooking the crowd in the square, a man surveys the scene. Lights, musicians, food stalls, and a million people peacefully protesting the president and chanting in waves, "Park Geun Hye resign".

Tiring Protest

A little girl yawns on her father's shoulders late into the night as they continue to march against the president.